241 The fully grown fish in your nursery pond will get much of
their food from small plants and animals grown in the green
water.

242 When the baby fish are born they will be very, very small
and at first they will get all of their food from small plants
and animals that grow in the green water.

243 These plants and animals are so small that they can hardly
be seen or they cannot be seen at all. But if the water is green
in your nursery pond, you can be sure that they are there.

244 So you must always be very careful that the water in your
nursery pond stays green so that your baby fish will have enough
to eat.

245 To keep the water green, do not forget to put a bucket of
fertilizer in the crib in your nursery pond each week. If you are
using plant compost or plant material, keep the crib filled to
the water line.

246 To keep the full-grown fish in your nursery pond healthy,
you must also feed them other kinds of food.

252 After about three months, there will be many baby fish of
different sizes in your pond. Then you can begin to take baby
fish out of your nursery pond to put into your big pond.

253 Use baby fish that are 5 centimetres or longer to put into
your big pond. If there are many baby fish that are 5 centimetres
or longer, choose the biggest ones.

254 The easiest way to take out your baby fish is to use a
seine net. If you use a seine net with a mesh size of about 1
centimetre the smaller fish will swim through and you will catch
the fish of 5 centimetres or longer. But be sure to put the fully
grown fish back in your nursery pond.

255 From now on, you can take baby fish out of your nursery
pond each month for your own use or to sell.

256 Be careful that your nursery pond does not become too full
of fish. If there are too many fish, they will not grow well and
your baby fish will not be strong and healthy.

257 To keep your nursery pond from becoming too full of fish,
drain all of the water out of the pond each year and collect all
of the fish.

258 You can eat the big fish that were in the nursery pond.
Items 340 to 351 will tell you what to do with the baby fish.

259 Wait until the bottom of the nursery pond is dry, then
clean and repair the bottom and the banks. Items 353 to 355 will
tell you how.

260 Now fill the nursery pond with water and fertilize it as
you did before. When the water is green, put in the right number
of fully grown female fish and male fish. Item 240 tells you how
many fully grown fish to use.

262 You must be very careful when you carry your baby fish
from one place to another. Baby fish can be hurt easily.

263 When you take the baby fish out of your nursery pond using
a seine net, do not carry them in the seine net. Carry them in a
container such as a clay pot with a cover a bucket with a lid a
plastic bag.

264 When you carry baby fish, you must be careful to use only
clean water keep the fish out of the sun or cover the container
with a wet cloth to keep it cool.

265 If you carry your baby fish in plastic bags, carry the
bags in a box so that they will not break. Cover the box and the
plastic bags with a wet cloth to keep them cool.

266 If you see that the baby fish are gasping for air, put
some air into the water from time to time by splashing the water
gently with your hand. Replace some of the old water by well
aerated, new water.